Tongs.



No. 662,936. Patented Dec. 4, |900.

F. HUEFNEH.Y

TONGS.

Application mea .my 25, 18961) (No Modal.)

m2726666@ n Zin/enfer rrED STATES PATEN OFFICE.

FRED HOEFNER, OF NEW MELLE, MISSOURI.

TONGS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N o. 662,936, dated December 4, 1900.

pplication filed July 25, 1896. Serial No. 600,552. (No model.) i

10 tif/ZZ whom it may concern,.-

Beit known that I, FRED HOEFNER, a citizen of the United States, residing at New Melle, in the county of St. Charles and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tongs; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,and

exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to certain new and useful improvements in tongs for holding and supporting reels containing barbed wire which will permit the reel to rotate easily as the wire is withdrawn for fence-building purposes.

The invention consists in certain details of construction and combination of parts which will be hereinafter more fully described.

In the drawings forming part of this speciiication, Figure 1 represents a perspective of my device, showing a reel of barbed wire supported thereon ready for unreeling. Fig. 2 is a view of the same detached and in the posit-ion assumed when in use, and Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the same in its partiallyclosed form prior to insertion in the reel.

Like reference-numerals indicate like parts in the several views.

Mydevice is shown in Fig. 1 in connection with a reel of barbed wire having a central opening 2 extending through its head. The tongs or supporting device for this reel are made up of a pair of levers 3 3, with rightangled extensions 4 thereon, which are loosely pivoted together at their angles on pivot 5 and are provided with rearwardly-extending arms 6 6, on which are mounted antifrictionrollers 7 7. The loose pivoting of the levers at 5 permits the extensions 4 to be spread suficiently--that is, moved away from each other-to allow the rollers to pass each other, as shown in Fig. 3. Each arm 6 is located at right angles to the extension 4 and projects therefrom in the same direction as the lever.

Incidental to this construction the peripheries In using my device the two levers 3 3 are partially folded upon their pivotal connection with each other to approximatethe position of the parts shown in Fig. 3, so that the extensions 4 are adapted to be inserted through the'opening 2 in the reel, with the arms 6 projecting through on the under side ofthe upper head of said reel. As the outer ends of the levers 3 3 are raised for the purpose of elevating the`reel the arms 6 6 are brought into coincidence, as shown in Fig. 2, and the peripheries of the antifriction-rollers made to bear against the under side of the head on opposite sides of the opening 2, securely holding the reel l in place thereby. The reel is now free to be rotated on the rollers 7 for the purpose of unwinding the barbed wire, and when the same has been completely nnwound or it is desired at any time to remove the tongs from the reel it may be done by simply forcing downward the outer ends of the levers 3 3, throwing the arms 6 out of engagement with the under side of said reel and permitting the free passage of the extensions 4 out of the opening 2. The antifriction-rollers 7 are provided for the purpose of'permit-- ting the easy rotation of the reel in the operation of unwinding the wire therefrom. Y

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

A device of the class described, comprising a pair of levers having extensions disposed at right angles thereto and pivoted together at their angles, each extension terminating in an arm which is disposed at right angles to the extension and extends back in the same direction as the lever of which it forms a part and in substantially parallel relation thereto and in the same plane therewith and said arms extending in opposite directions to each other and lying in substantial alinement with each other when the extensions are in coincidence, and antifriction-rollers journaled on said arms and having their axes of rotation extending in the same directionas the arms.

In testimony whereof I have signed this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

FEED EOEENEE.

Witnesses:

GEORGE KAERENBROCK, EDW. KAERENBROCK.

IOO 

